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United States presidential election, 2016
The 'United States Presidential Election of 2016 ' was the 58th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. It is noted for the first time a tie has occurred, as incumbent President Selina Meyer and running mate Senator Tom James of Maine tied with Senator Bill O'Brien of Arizona and his running mate Senator Laura Montez of New Mexico. After the vote went to the House and eventually the Senate, Laura Montez became President. This election also decided the makeup of the 115th United States Congress. Background In 2012, Stuart Hughes won the presidency. His favorability dropped precipitously after the Uzbek Hostage Crisis. He announced he would not seek re-election in 2015, and resigned in January 2016 to take care of his ill wife. Vice President Selina Meyer was inaugurated. Blue Party Candidates * Selina Meyer, Incumbent President of the United States * Danny Chung, Governor of Minnesota * Joe Thornhill, Ex-Baseball Manager * George Maddox, Former Secretary of Defense * Owen Pierce, U.S. Representative from Nevada Before the Primaries With Hughes' unpopular, even in their own party, Danny Chung was the first to announce that he was starting an exploratory committee to see if there would be a chance to run for President, even though Hughes hadn't officially announced he was dropping out. In mid-2015, George Maddox announced his resignation as Secretary of Defense, prompting Hughes to announce he's not seeking re-election. On October 18, 2015, Vice President Selina Meyer announced her candidacy. That November, Joe Thornhill, an ex-baseball manager with no political experience, announced his candidacy. Primaries and Caucuses In January 2016, Joe Thornhill won the Iowa Caucus. Shortly before the New Hampshire primary, President Hughes announced he was resigning, and Vice President Selina Meyer was sworn in as President, while still seeking the party nomination. Danny Chung officially wins the New Hampshire primary, Thornhill second, and Meyer third. In Joint Session, it is revealed that Thornhill is thinking of dropping out of the race. According to the Veep intro in season four, Selina does poorly with the primaries, but somehow manages to secure the party nomination. Convention In July 2016, Doyle (Meyer's VP) announced he would not be Vice President after Inauguration Day due to prostate problems. Meyer, considering Chung and Maddox for her ticket, eventually chooses Maine Senator Tom James for her running mate. Red Party Candidates * Bill O'Brien, U.S. Senator from Arizona Convention In July 2016, Bill O'Brien announced he would select New Mexico Senator Laura Montez as his running mate, ironic due to his "anti immigration and pro Caucasian" stances. General Election Campaign Within a week of the Convention, both the Meyer/James and the O'Brien/Montez campaigns were out on the trail. The Meyer campaign began campaigning in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Maine. The O'Brien campaign began in Florida. Both campaigns were affected by the Hurricane which was supposed to hit North Carolina (which the Governor announced a state of emergency), but veered south and hit Florida. Meyer was unable to get to Florida because she grounded flights in North Carolina, where she was at. O'Brien, in Florida, pulled a Teddy Bear out of the wreckage of a destroyed home. In September 2016, after a shooting in Pittsburgh, Tom James created a controversy by saying that the shooter was a victim also. He apologized later that day. In October 2016, the Mommy Meyer bill was killed in the House. Due to rumors that President Meyer had something to do with this, Congressman Moyes called a Congressional hearing into this. It was later revealed that the Meyer campaign hacked the medical records of dead children's families to send a campaign mailer, in addition to the data breach revealed earlier in March in which the campaign hacked the social security records of a little girl. Bill Ericsson was scapegoated and arrested on November 9. Debates * In September 2016, the first Presidential Debate between President Selina Meyer and Senator Bill O'Brien took place. According to Wendy Keegan, Selina won the first debate (mentioned in Mommy Meyer). * In October 2016, the Vice Presidential Debate between Senator Tom James and Senator Laura Montez took place. (mentioned in B/ill) Results On Election Night, at first, O'Brien had a large lead over Meyer. The first projections of the night gave O'Brien an electoral vote lead of 33-10. By 10:00 PM ET, CNN has O'Brien up 177-61, after winning Wisconsin and Minnesota, which were thought to go to Meyer. After projecting Pennsylvania, putting O'Brien at 267-207, Meyer almost calls O'Brien to concede, but around 12:06 AM ET, CNN says Pennsylvania was the incorrect call and is given to Meyer, who later wins Florida and Colorado. After winning Virginia, CNN officially reports that the Election is tie. Economic Turmoil On November 9, as Meyer addressed the nation, the economy began plummeting, with the DOW Jones experiencing worst day since the Housing Crisis in 2008. Experts connected this to uncertainty after the Election. On November 10, Meyer appointed running mate Tom James as Economy Czar, and established a banking task force, including EM Wheelwright CEO and future boyfriend Charlie Baird. The economy continued to worsen throughout the month and that December, Meyer decided not to bail out EM Wheelwright and bailed out a different bank. After that, the economy began recovering. Nevada Recount The day after the Election, CNN reports that the margin of victory in which O'Brien won Nevada was less than one percent, which constitutes a recount. If Meyer wins the recount, she wins the presidency. A recount was green-lit on November 11. The Meyer team learns that there are missing ballots in Nevada and asks to extend the deadline. However, to their dismay, they learn that the missing ballots were military absentee ballots. On November 20, O'Brien officially wins Nevada, but in doing so, Meyer loses the popular vote nationally. Vote in the House On January 3, 2017, the U.S. House voted on President between Meyer and O'Brien. 3 Congressman abstained and neither Meyer nor O'Brien received 26 votes, the majority to be declared the President. The final result was O'Brien 25, Meyer 22, and 3 abstentions. Vote in the Senate On January 5, 2017, the Senate voted on President between Tom James and Laura Montez. The end result was a 50-50 tie, which was broken by the sitting Vice President Andrew Doyle, who surprisingly voted for Laura Montez, after being offered Secretary of State. Laura Montez became President of the United States. Aftermath After the vote in the Senate, House Speaker Jim Marwood announced that the US House of Representatives would not vote again on President. On January 20, Laura Montez was inaugurated. See also * Selina Meyer presidential campaign, 2016 * Bill O'Brien presidential campaign, 2016 * 115th United States Congress * 2012 U.S. Presidential Election Category:Government Category:2016 Campaign